Ghost Stories
by newbienovelistRD
Summary: Lea thought she would spend a stormy night reading ghost stories. But when a real-life ghost story happens before her, a ghost from Katherine's past comes to haunt the Guardian of Imagination.
1. A Dark and Spooky Night

**Here is a collaboration story between Redbat132 and myself. Enjoy and no flames.**

* * *

It was a dark and stormy night. New York City was going through a thunderstorm with the rain pouring hard and the winds howling loud.

Lea Carolina Thompson was in her Pjs and laying on her bed reading a book she got from her hometown library called _'Tales To Haunt Your Nights'_. She thought this was the perfect night to read it.

She wore a soft gray nightshirt dress with black bold words 'HOCKEY GAL' in the center and two matching colored hockey sticks crossing each other plus tiny puck images between the two words, blue-white snowflake printed cotton flannel pajama pants that have front pockets and an elastic waist with drawstring enclosure.

"Wow, Nightlight. This book is full of scary stories," Lea said to her wooden companion, whom was sitting next to her. "Good thing we've faced fear and danger before. Otherwise, this would keep me awake all night in terror."

But as Lea read, the more scared she was becoming. Sure, the ghosts in these stories weren't real, but in her head, she imagined what ghosts would look like if they actually were.

Were they white and see-through? Did they look like skeletons or have missing limbs? Can they really fly, walk through walls and turn invisible? And did they haunt people with wails and moans and eerie laughter?

Lea shuddered at the thought with Nightlight noticing. "On second thought, this is way more terrifying than Pitch Black and his Nightmare creatures."

Nightlight stood up with pride, telling her that Lea is brave and shouldn't let a silly ghost book scare her.

That made Lea smile and scooped Nightlight up for a gentle hug. "What would I do without a great friend like you? Thanks, buddy."

Suddenly, a tap came to Lea's window.

"YIPE!" Lea looked over her shoulder and saw that it was just a tree branch. Lea chuckled nervously as she put a book marker in between the pages before putting it on her nightstand to continue later. "Maybe I should call it a night." She turned off her lamp and cuddled up in her blankets.

"Goodnight, Nightlight," Lea said, already falling asleep.

Nightlight went close to Lea, this time. Figuring she might need some close company to stand guard, just in case.

* * *

Meanwhile, in her cozy home in another realm, Katherine was in her night robe sitting in her plush arm chair enjoying a cup of hot cocoa, deep in thought.

"Another day, another story saved. Might as well enjoy another good book to make my break worthwhile," Katherine talked to her goose friend Kailash.

The Himalayan Snow Goose honked in agreement, already sitting down to nap.

"Okay, Man in Moon. What's good tonight?" Katherine asked from above, seeing the clear full moon.

Normally, Kate lets the Ganderly choose something for her. But this time, she wanted the very first Guardian and her mentor to pick one.

The moonlight began forming a shadow, a shadow that became the silhouette of a figure Katherine recognized right away.

"Impossible...It couldn't be..." Katherine muttered.

Kailash honked in surprise.

Showing before Katherine was a strange shadow figure of a man with slightly spiky hair, a goatee, a long jacket, and scarf.

The Guardian of Imagination felt her mind flashing different memories that nearly made her cry. All she could do was cover her mouth in utter shock.

"Man in Moon, with all due respect...he is only in the series I cannot access to. You know that I can't unlock anything from the Forbidden Section unless it was absolutely necessary," she reasoned.

But to her amazement, the silhouette changed into an arrow. An arrow that pointed directly to the Forbidden Section.

"What?!" Katherine hissed. Was this happening for...a reason?!

Normally, the Guardian of Imagination would protest about this. But she knew that the Guardian of Wishes wouldn't request Katherine to check on a book from the Forbidden Section unless there was a very good explanation.

And deep down, she did want to read about this particular character again.

"...Okay, MiM. I'll do it," Katherine got up and followed the arrow. "Only because you requested this."

Kate proceeded until she reached the deepest, darkest bookcase in the Ganderly. It was an entire wall filled with old, aged books. The only light provided was a dimly lit lightbulb dangling above Katherine's head. The auburn girl was having a hard time believing what she was about to read, after so long.

She reached out and took the first book that caught her eye. The one she wanted to read ever since the Man in the Moon hinted her: _'The Tale of Ghost Writer'. _Its cover was blood red. And the text appeared to be spelled in drippy black letters,

Magically, after grabbing the book, Kate heard the book's lock _click_. As if it didn't need a key to unlock. She knew that this was the Man in the Moon's doing. He let the Guardian of Imagination have access to this book, but only for one night.

With a nervous hand, Katherine opened the book to chapter 1.

"Here it goes..." Katherine took a deep breath and slowly let it out before reading it while returning to her plush arm chair. "'Once upon a time, in a world where the departed goes and haunts the human world, there lived a talented writer who spent his time writing stories and poems at his mansion-like library. He had black shaggy-like hair, green eyes underneath his purple glasses, a sharp nose, pointy ears, razor sharp white teeth, a black goatee, and pale gray skin. His clothes were a long gray shirt, a long amethyst trench coat, a dark gray scarf, dark gray pants, and black pointy shoes. His name...is Ghost Writer,'"

As Katherine read, she felt the air around her turn cold.

"Strange. It wasn't cold a minute ago," Katherine said out loud, pausing from her storytelling. She was getting a weird vibe that she wasn't alone. "Could it be...?"

"Wooooooo!" A ghostly voice moaned in Katherine's ear.

"A GHOST!" Katherine jumped to the side, falling to the floor. "I knew reading from the Forbidden Section was a bad idea!"

Kate grabbed her dagger and looked around for the intruder as she got back up. "Who sent you?! Vlad Plasmius? Nocturn? Walker? Answer me!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Chill out, will ya?" A cloaked figure floated down from the ceiling. The hood was removed, revealing Jack Frost underneath.

"Jackson Overland Frost!? What in the name of all things Winter are you doing here?!" Katherine demanded, clearly not amused while putting her dagger away back inside her robe. "Don't you know better than to scare a trained Guardian like that?!"

"Sorry! Sorry!" Jack landed his feet on the floor. "I was just in the neighborhood and I thought I'd drop by." He picked up the book Katherine was reading off the floor she dropped when being spooked. "So, what's with this book, anyway?"

"It's from a series I use to write about. Another dimensional world where ghosts exists and sometimes cause trouble," Katherine explained. "Man in Moon requested this of me to read about the Ghost Writer tonight. Which I find odd because he can only be found in the Forbidden Section. Where all the books that are not yet to be revealed, finished, nor told. They will only be accessed when the time is right."

"That's weird." said Jack. "What do you think Manny is up to?"

"I honestly don't know. And, strange as it may seem, I actually do miss reading about this character," Katherine sheepishly admitted, looking down at the book. "Along with the rest of this series. Although a spooky ghost and became one because of work related stress, Stephen really isn't that bad,"

That made Jack raise an eyebrow. "Who?"

Katherine immediately covered her mouth on that when realizing what she just finished saying. "Uh, no one, Jack. It's nothing," she calmly answered, taking back the book from Jack's grasp. "I think I had enough excitement for tonight. Best to put it back where it belongs and have it locked up with the others."

Jack shrugged. "Alright, maybe I can use my ghost scare on Bunny. That'll give him a jolt."

Katherine sighed in relief, as Jack left. She looked at the book, unsure if she should keep reading or not.

"...I'm sorry, MiM. Those days with Stephen and the other ghosts are way behind me. I can't read back the reminder of abandoning such good friends. I just can't,"

Kate walked back to the Forbidden Section and returned the book back on the shelf. She decided to head back to her private quarters in sadness, already imagining MiM shaking his head down on her in disappointment.

Little did she knew, that this was only the start of a new ghost story. Especially when the book Kate put back began to glow an anonymous shade green aura...

* * *

Back at Lea's house, the storm had passed. Lea and Nightlight were fast asleep, the last thing on their minds were ghosts…Well, technically, Nightlight can't sleep. But he was still staying on guard in protecting Lea. The wooden toy was happy to see that his best friend wasn't having any bad dreams after reading those spooky stories.

However, something was occurring. And it wasn't a bad dream. A cloud of green smoke swirled above Lea.

Nightlight, who could see that mysterious cloud, quickly stood up and took out his staff. Whatever it was, he is not going to let it hurt Lea.

Two huge arms wearing flaming gray gauntlets appeared out of the green mist and grabbed Lea, pulling her inside.

If he had a voice, Nightlight would be screaming in shock! Instead, he quickly grabbed on to Lea's pajama pants and joined her in going through that strange doorway by who knows what's on the other side.

Whatever danger Lea and Nightlight were heading now, it could not be good.


	2. Knight Terrors

In a parallel dimension that's entirely made of an eerie green energy where doors floated, two strange creatures floated through the strange world.

These creatures were ghosts. And this was the Ghost Zone, home to all ghosts.

"Amorpho, are you sure this is a good idea?" asked a ghost girl named Lindsey Bates. Lindsey was actually human, but thanks to a mysterious ring, she was able to turn into a ghost.

"Of course, my dear. Trust me." said Amorpho. Amorpho was a ghost with the ability to transform into anyone. He was a sometime friend of Lindsey. And right now, the faceless ghost was going to help Lindsey uncover the mystery of her ring.

"Okay, but shouldn't we have Danny with us? Or Tucker? Or possibly anyone, in case some random ghost tries to hurt me?!" Lindsey asked. Despite slightly getting the hang of her new ghost powers and befriending two friendly ghosts, she had doubts about being at the Ghost Zone.

Last time she was there, an evil Halloween ghost called the Fright Knight kidnapped her and stole her fear factor as part of his plan in making the world live in complete fear. Which also managed to get Danny and Sam, too.

Amorpho sighed. "Those two will only get in the way. I myself am more than capable to assist you. Now, let us find our frozen friend, Frostbite."

"Well, if you believe he knows what's going on, then so do I. Let's hope it gives me the answers I'm looking for that have something to do with this ring," Lindsey replied, looking at the ring that gives her the ghost abilities.

Not much is known about the ring. All Lindsey could get out of is that it was a gift given to her by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, during her first Christmas at her new town she moved into. She had no clue it was a powerful ring to turn her into a ghost until later.

Just then, Lindsey seized flying. Her hands clutched her head.

"What's wrong?!" asked Amorpho.

Lindsey's eyes were screwed shut as he rubbed her head. "I feel weird..." she said numbly. "I'm sensing that someone is...afraid?"

"Nonsense! How does one 'sense' fear?" said Amorpho.

"I think...this is a new power!" Lindsey gasped, now opening her eyes. "And it's coming from Fright Knight's castle!"

"The Fright Knight?!" Amorpho clutched his cane. "What is that Halloween reject up to now?!"

"I don't know, but it can't be good!" said Lindsey. She yelped when Amorpho grabbed her arm and pulled her. "HEY! Where are we going?!"

"To find out what he's up to!" Amorpho snipped.

"But why?! Can't we just leave him alone?!" Lindsey may have defeated the Fright Knight before. But she hardly remembered it. Plus, she had a fear of knights in armor due to a terrible haunted house incident.

"You said yourself that someone is afraid and it's at the Fright Knight's castle, correct? Well, he might have captured another human to steal their fear again or something much worse! Are you really going to let that happen again?" Amorpho remarked.

Lindsey sighed. "No..."

"Then let's go already!" Amorpho pulled Lindsey and flew faster.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Fright Knight's castle, little Nightlight adjusted himself to get a better look at where he was. To him, it seemed like a strange red medieval castle. He also noticed that the sky was black and green with floating rocks around. Wherever he and Lea were, they were definitely not in New York anymore.

Nightlight also found himself lying in what appeared to be garbage. He jumped out and, to his annoyance, discovered that he was tossed into a garbage can by whoever was responsible for this. He didn't even think that this place had a trash can at such an ancient looking place.

"HEEEELP! LET ME GOOOOO!" Lea's screams were heard from inside the castle.

Nightlight jumped in startlement, realizing that his best friend is in trouble! He quickly got out his diamonded-dagger staff and hurried to where the screaming was coming from.

Inside the castle, Lea was tied down to a medieval torture rack in a dark, spooky dungeon. She tried to struggle free, but she couldn't get free. "WHAT'S GOING ON?! WHERE AM I?! SOMEBODY ANSWER ME!"

"SILENCE!" A voice roared through the chamber, making Lea close her mouth. She heard footsteps and a pair of glowing green eyes looking directly at her.

It was at that point Lea saw the most terrifying thing she's ever seen in her life.

It was a knight dressed head to toe in flaming black armor with gray shoulder guards. He wore a cape made of purple flames. In one of his gray flaming gauntlets was a glowing green sword. He even had a white skull at the center of his waist.

"Welcome, child." the Knight bellowed deep within him.

"W-wh-who are you? ..._What_ are you!?" Lea managed to ask in slight fear.

"I am the Fright Knight, and master of your fate." He pointed his sword at Lea. "And you, my dear, shall be my prisoner! To be haunted and tormented for the rest of your days!"

Lea felt faint. "I-I must be dreaming! This can't be real!"

Just then, tiny footsteps were heard. Lea spotted Nightlight charging toward the knight.

Lea gasped with joy when her companion charged at him, weapon drawn. But Nightlight went right through the knight's body.

"Wha-?!" Lea started to tremble. "H-How-?!"

The Fright Knight put his foot onto Nightlight, preventing the puppet to escape. "Not easy fighting a ghost, is it?" He flashed his eyes at Lea.

Lea's heart dropped. "A ghost?..." Her fear sky-rocketed. "A REAL GHOST?! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Nightlight struggled to get out of this ghost's hold on him. Not even using his diamonded staff had any effect on him. Especially when trying to stab his armored foot that's keeping the wooden toy down.

The Fright Knight used his power to trap Nightlight in a small green sphere. "Now then..." The ghoulish knight turned to Lea. "let the haunting commence!" He turned into a flock of bats and swarmed at Lea.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Lea screamed, screwing her eyes shut as the bats fluttered around her. "EWW! EWW! BATS! BATS! BATS! GET THEM AWAY! HEEEEEELP!" Lea was on the brink of sheer horror.

"Cease your reign of terror, Fright Knight!" said a voice.

Nightlight, whom was trying to escape out of another sphered imprisonment, turned his head at where the voice was coming from.

Lea, on the other hand, was too busy screaming and closing her eyes from the bats to know who said that.

Amorpho and Lindsey arrived on the scene. The Fright Knight returned to his armored self. "Ah, Amorpho." He saw Lindsey beside Amorpho, trying not to look scared.

"Okay, just like we planned." Amorpho grabbed Lindsey and threw her at the knight.

"AAAAAAAAHHH!" Lindsey screamed as she slammed into the Fright Knight. With the diversion in motion, Amorpho used his cane to cut Lea free of her bindings and swept her into his arms. He flew his way out of the castle.

Luckily, after that move on Fright Knight, Nightlight managed to free himself out of his power and hurried plus leaped to grab onto Amorpho's long coat tails for a lift before taking off completely.

Once the Fright Knight got to his feet, he watched Lindsey stagger to her feet. "Amorpho's lucky he doesn't have a mouth for me to punch..." She took one look at the Fright Knight, gasped, and jumped back. "A-Alright, F-F-Fright Knight! What are you up to?!" she demanded, though it was hard to sound tough when you're terrified.

"Do not fret, child." the Fright Knight replied, oddly calm. "I was merely using that human as bait to bring you here to me."

While that was happening, Lea kept her eyes closed and covered them with her hands, still horrified about what's happening.

"Please be Jack, please be Jack, please be Jack, please be Jack, please be Jack, PLEASE BE JACK!" she pleaded rapidly, hoping it's the Guardian of Fun rescuing her from that creepy ghost knight and not another terrifying phantom or evil creature.

Lea felt herself set gently on solid ground. She opened her eyes and, much to her horror, the one who saved her wasn't Jack.

The figure appeared to be a sleek body that has no mouth or nose. He wore large red glasses, a fedora hat, a suit with long coat tails, a red tie, and a red sash, and carried a black straight cane with a white skull on top.

"A FACELESS GHOST! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The blonde teen ran for her life, away from Amorpho. "Jack, Kate, North, Bunny, Tooth, Sandy, any Guardian, help me!" Lea shouted quickly at the top of her lungs. "Where are the Guardians of Childhood when I need them?! I WANT OUT OF THIS NIGHTMARE!"

Amorpho flew in front of Lea, blocking her way. "Stop right there!"

Lea stared in horror at the ghost. She couldn't take it anymore. Her eyes rolled back and she fainted.

The faceless ghost exhaled an exasperated sigh. "Humans..." He picked up Lea's limp body and carried her to a certain location in the Ghost Zone.

* * *

Back in a more pleasant world, Katherine returned to work on recording any important events from any dimensional characters. She soon discovered that a new book glowing on and off, as if it was a vibrating phone.

"Okay, that's a new record. It looks like this book has been activated since last night," Katherine deduced, noticing a few pages were already formed.

When she checked what it was about, Kate's eyes were wide in complete shock. "No..."

"Hey, Kate!"

"GYAAAAH!" Katherine shrieked as she jumped, her hand clutched her chest when seeing who it was. "JACK! Don't do that!"

"Again, sorry. But this is an emergency," Jack explained, concern shown through both his face and tone of voice. "I was about to pick Lea up for this fun snow day I had planned for her but found out that she was not in her room. And if that's not weird enough, Nightlight's gone missing, too, while her backpack and hockey stick are still lying around. I know Lea long enough that she would never leave without her stuff. I came to ask if you know where she is."

Katherine gulped. "Unfortunately, I do."

She handed Jack the book she was reading. Jack's eyes grew when he read the pages. "Oh, no..."

"Lea has been captured by a bad medieval ghost called the Fright Knight, and now is stuck in the one dimension that's only seen in the Forbidden Section; the Ghost Zone," Katherine explained, clutching her fists while looking down gravely.

Kailash honked in fear when Kate said that.

"Ghost Zone?!" said Jack. "Like, real ghosts?! You were serious about that!?"

Katherine nodded her head. "Yes. It is a parallel dimension to the human realm that is home to all ghosts. Where all matter and energy there is composed entirely of ectoplasm. It coexists with another dimensional Earth. I hoped to never go back to that place, but it would seem that I don't have any other choice. I must prepare myself,"

The Guardian of Imagination hurried to one of the rooms at her place and changed into her yellow fur-coat and black combat boots.

"I'm coming too." said Jack.

Katherine shook her head. "No, Jack. The Ghost Zone is too dangerous. Even for a spirit like you."

"Lea needs me, from what I've read so far. And there's no way I'm going to let you go there by yourself," Jack clarified, placing the book down. "If this Ghost Zone place is as bad as you describe it, then you're going to need all the help in rescuing her. Besides, I may be still new with all this Guardian business, but I've learned pretty quickly that it's better to face evil together as a team than on my own."

Katherine pondered over Jack's reasoning. She knew that what the Spirit of Winter said is true. It's better than facing a threat when being solo. And who knows what danger will happen there when finding Lea?

"Very well. Let's go!" said Katherine, already holding her hair back into a low ponytail and getting the book with her mission to place in a satchel bag for her travels. "Be ready, Jack Frost. For this is a world beyond anything you and the other Guardians have seen," she warned, already grabbing her snow globe. "You must stay close to me. I'm the only one who can navigate through the place and know exactly who and what we're up against."

Jack shrugged. "Gee, you make it sound like a walk in the park."

Katherine rolled her eyes, as she tossed the snowglobe. A portal opened and the two Guardians stepped inside.

They only hoped that they were not too late.


	3. Bloody History

Lea felt cold. Very, _very_ cold. Lea didn't worry, she was used to the cold. She hoped to wake up in her bed and see if it was her beloved friend Jack Frost making it snow in her room again.

But when Lea opened her eyes, she found herself in not a snowy bedroom, but a frozen wasteland!

"What?! How did I get here!? Was that all part of a nightmare from reading that scary ghost story book or is this still part of it?!" Lea asked herself out loud, quickly getting up and looking around until she gasped in horrible realization. "Wait! Where's Nightlight?! Oh, please tell me I didn't leave him behind!"

"Calm down!" said a snippy voice.

Lea turned and there was the faceless ghost. Nightlight was sitting in the palm of his hand. But what really caught Lea's attention was the massive, hairy beast with a skeleton arm encased in ice!

This creature was white with his horns made of solid ice, along with a long white tail that had a few small ice shards on top. He appeared to have short blue warrior tattered cloak held by a gold ring, an old-fashioned golden arm ring bracelet on his right bicep, and a matching belt with an icy blue jewel on the center plus a short tattered blue cloth around his waist.

"You!" Forgetting her fear, Lea glared at the faceless creep holding her friend while lifting her fists up to fight. "I don't know who you guys are or where I am, but you better not hurt Nightlight!"

Despite going against two giant creatures-along with one of them as an actual ghost-Lea would never let anything bad happen to her friends. Especially her companion since childhood.

With a newfound sense of courage, Lea charged at Amorpho. The shapeshifting ghost sighed as Lea passed right through him and heard her land face first on the snow. He didn't even need to try to go intangible for that, considering humans are the ghosts in the Ghost Zone…when focused and done properly.

The hairy beast chuckled as he grabbed Lea by her ankles with his icy arm, dangling her upside down. "For a human, you certainly are a spirited one!"

"Hey! Put me down! I am not going to let some evil ghosts hurt my friend!" Lea exclaimed, struggling to get loose and try to punch her captor but was distance away.

"Oh, dear! Your feet must be ice cold!" The monster started rubbing Lea's feet with the undersides of his furry hand.

Lea let out a high squeal and covered her mouth, forgetting her fighting struggle. "D-D-Don't do that!" she managed to say, mustering as much will power from resisting the furry creature's touch on her sensitive feet. Even if it tickled so terribly.

"Is this really necessary, Frostbite?" asked Amorpho.

"Of course! We can't have a guest freeze to death here!" The creature kept rubbing her feet as he and Amorpho walked to a village of some sort.

"Ahahahahahahaha!" Lea laughed, as she finally broke down and held on to her stomach. "Quit it! Heeheeheehahahahahaha! You're tickling me! Cut it out!"

The blonde teen didn't know what was worse. The fact that she was being carried upside down by a giant snow beast with a faceless ghost by his side or that she was being tickled at her worst spot while being carried upside down by a giant snow beast with a faceless ghost by his side.

"Nightlight! Hahahahahahahahahaha! H-Help me!" Lea called out.

However, her wooden toy didn't do anything. He would only attack unless Lea was in terrible danger. And Nightlight has studied that these two ghosts were not a threat. So, he just continued sitting on Amorpho's hand comfortably.

The snow ghost beast brought Lea right side up and held her in his skeleton hand. "Welcome, human! To the land of the Far Frozen!"

Once calming down, Lea was surprised and amazed at what appeared to be the creature's hometown. For a freezing cold wasteland, it was actually beautiful, to her. She even noticed more yeti creatures around the area, but without an icy skeleton arm like the one guiding her.

"Oh, wow. This is your home? It's breathtaking!" Lea exclaimed.

"Thank you! Now, let's get you out of that dress and into something warm. You must have been robbed!" said the monster.

"Robbed?" Lea asked in confusement until she looked down and felt her cheeks red in embarrassment. The blonde teen nearly forgot about the fact that she's still in her PJs. "Oh…You mean my pajamas. I wear these when going to bed. And that creepy black knight ghost kidnapped me when I was asleep, somehow. I don't even know what this place is or why he wanted me. But I can tell you that it's not the first time something weird has happened to me."

"I see. Well, let us go inside and we'll have you in a more comfortable attire."

"Thank you, uh...Frostbite, correct?" Lea said, definitely at ease now and gave a smile. "I'm Lea, by the way. Lea Thompson."

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the Fright Knight's castle, Lindsey was in shock by the Fright Knight's true motives. "What?! You mean you kidnapped some random girl just to lure me here?!" Lindsey asked incredulously.

"Precisely. You found her by sensing her fear, did you not?"

Lindsey gasped. Why does the Fright Knight know that?! How?!

The ghostly knight arched a green eye. "Well?"

"Y-Yeah, I did. But how...how did you know?!"

The Fright Knight turned with a swish of his fiery cape. "Follow me, child. All your questions will be answered soon."

Lindsey watched The Fright Knight walked down the hall.

Although wary of trusting her greatest fear, Lindsey reluctantly followed him. She sensed that he was honest. Not to mention that was curious as to what he knows.

_Hopefully, Amorpho's taken that innocent girl somewhere safe,_ she thought.

Putting her trust in Amorpho, Lindsey followed the Fright Knight down a dark and mysterious hallway.

Lindsey was silent as she followed the Fright Knight, not wanting to anger him with mingling chit chat. They walked into a chamber with a giant portrait that was covered by an old black curtain.

"You see, child, long before nearly all the other ghosts in the Ghost Zone were even spawned, there was a ghost named Pariah Dark, he was the most powerful and dangerous ghost in existence. He was the tyrannical king of all ghosts."

The Fright Knight grabbed the curtain and yanked it off the portrait, Lea gasped when she saw the portrait.

It was Pariah Dark himself.

_Yikes! And I thought the Fright Knight was creepy!_ Lindsey thought. However, she couldn't help but think that the name sounded familiar to her. Like she's heard of this guy before from someone.

"So... what's this got to do with me?" Lindsey asked the Fright Knight.

"The answer..." The Fright Knight pointed at Lindsey's hand. "Is on your finger."

"Huh?" Lindsey held up her left hand. "My ring?!"

"That is no ordinary ring. It belonged to Bloody Mary."

Lindsey gasped; her hand started to tremble. "B-B-B-Bloody Mary?! Like that ghost who takes your soul when you say her name three times in a mirror?! THAT Bloody Mary?!"

The Fright Knight scoffed. "Oh, please. That's just a tall tale invented by the humans. I'll tell you the real story of Bloody Mary. She was once Pariah's lover. Bloody Mary was a witch's ghost whose power was the only one that was a match for Lord Pariah.

Lindsey listened as the Fright Knight continued.

"Bloody Mary wanted all ghosts to live together in peace and harmony. But every ghost is different in their own way. And some cannot be controlled. So, to make a kingdom of their own, Pariah and Bloody Mary needed a symbol of authority. Or two..."

The Fright Knight moved aside the painting of his master, revealing a large metal slot. The knight sunk his Soul Shredder into the slot and turned it to the right.

A secret passageway opened, inside were two items. A glowing green ring and a crown made of green fire.

"Whoa..." Lindsey muttered, amazed at these mystical items revealed before her.

"The Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire. Bloody Mary made these items to help Pariah rule. Mary wanted to rule the Ghost Zone alongside Pariah. Unfortunately, the power changed him and double-crossed Mary. The kind then ruled the Ghost Zone with an iron fist. Outraged and heartbroken, Bloody Mary lead the army of ancient ghosts to rebel against Pariah and seal him away in the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, a sarcophagus of her own creation, no less."

"Okay...Definitely didn't see that one coming. So, why show me this now? Even after trying to take my fear away and use it to harm my world," Lindsey questioned, wondering what's the catch behind all of this.

"Because I see potential in you...Lindsey Bates." said the Fright Knight.

_Huh. He does know my name,_ Lindsey thought to herself.

The Fright Knight took the Ring of Rage in one hand and the Crown of Fire in the other. "Pariah Dark is no longer my master. But with my help, I can make you just as powerful as him. And when you're ready, we will rule the Ghost Zone together!" He offered Lindsey the Crown of Fire. "Don't deny your destiny. Join me."

Lindsey looked at the Crown of Fire. She felt mesmerized as she stared at it.

But as cool as that crown was, Lindsey had her integrity. She took a step back. "No, thank you." said Lindsey. "The Ghost Zone is fine just the way it is. And they don't need a king or queen to rule over them. Besides, I don't want to go mad with power just like Pariah did." Lindsey flew up toward the ceiling. "I'm flattered, Fright Knight. But no deal!"

The Fright Knight watched as the ghost girl flew off and left the castle. "Oh, man! I'm gonna need a new outfit after this! That creepy knight and his ghost story made me sweat bullets!" Lindsey looked around. "Now, to find Amorpho and get the heck out of here!"

* * *

Moments later, Lea was escorted to one of the icy rooms in Frostbite's village to slip on something warmer for her there…Right after taking some quick measurements by a few of his people.

"Heeheeheeheehee! C-c-come on, stahahahahahahap!" Lea giggled uncontrollably, feeling their furry hands and clawed nails poking around her body. She laughed harder when one of them touched her bare feet. "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NO MOHOHOHOHORE!"

"My! Who knew humans were so ticklish?" said one of the Far Frozen citizens.

"Especially their wittle feet?" another one cooed. He took Lea's foot and ran his claw slowly down the arch.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STOP THAT!" Lea sputtered with laughter.

What seemed like forever of ticklish torture, the ghost-like yetis finished and left the room to go work on her outfit. Lea took this moment to rest on top of an icy armed chair until her strength returned.

"Okay…It's confirmed. I am not in Brooklyn anymore," Lea replied, still catching her breath. "At least wherever I am, I ended up in a place that makes me feel like home…Well, my kind of elemental home, so to speak."

The blonde teen stood up to check around her icy surroundings. What caught her attention the most was this strange metal-like pole with ice. It really reminded her of her own sports gears back home. She went over, grabbed it, and felt its weight.

"Whoa. This doesn't feel any different from my hockey stick or baseball bat," Lea admitted, gently swinging it around to get a better feel of it.

Just then, Lea heard tiny footsteps to notice a familiar face from a distance that made her smile.

"Glad to know you tagged along after I got kidnapped by that Knight Creep. I'm guessing these guys that live in this snowy land are some kind of good ghost creatures and we're in another alternate dimension that's full of them," Lea guessed to Nightlight, still practicing her moves on the weapon she found with Nightlight getting a little closer. "Including that ghost with the black coat, matching hat, and smooth faceless skin."

Nightlight perked up on that last part, after stopping at a perfect distance of where Lea was. He continued listening.

"Now that I think about it, he definitely didn't seem so bad. And he could have hurted me or tried to break you, like that Black Ghost Knight, but he didn't," Lea took a moment to stop so she could face and talk to her childhood companion better. "I wish I knew more about him. The next time I see him, remind me to thank him for rescuing me."

"You're quite welcome,"

"YIKES!" Lea jumped back, too shocked at what she witnessed. Nightlight just talked! And, taking another look, his eyes were red instead of mint green!

"Forgive me, child," 'Nightlight' chuckled, getting closer to help the girl up.

By sudden reaction, Lea screamed and swung the metal-like pole low the way she plays hockey that sent 'Nightlight' flying across the room until he crashed into a wall. She watched the tiny figure slide down and faceplanted on the floor that caused him to change into the Faceless Ghost.

"You?! Oh, man, I am so sorry! I didn't know it was you or the fact you could do that!" Lea apologized, hurrying to check on him with concern.

Amorpho rubbed his head, slightly groaning. "It's alright. I'm already dead."

"What's all the noise?" asked Frostbite, already coming in the room with the real Nightlight sitting on his hairy shoulder.

"That was on me! I had no idea he was disguised as Nightlight and I panicked!" Lea raised her hands in defense.

"It is okay, Miss Lea. Amorpho has the ability to change into any being at will. Hence, your little friend," Frostbite explained, bringing his hand close to Nightlight for him to climb aboard and then give him back to the young blonde teen. "He is a remarkable being I had ever seen!"

"Oh. Why, thank you," Lea showed gratitude with a smile while using her free hand to get Nightlight and place him on her own shoulder to sit on.

"Now then, tell me, what kind of technique you used on your opponent?" Frostbite questioned with interest curiosity. "Surely, it must have been something to knock down a ghost, such as Amorpho."

"You mean what I did just now? I only used this pole like a hockey stick and sent him back into a nearby wall," Lea explained, giving the pole back to Frostbite. "I had a lot of practice with this sport. It's one of my favorite games to play for fun. I even use it to defend myself against people who want to hurt me or innocent pedestrians."

"Fascinating. May you show my people on this sport you call 'hockey'?"

"Oh. Well, sure. I'd be happy to tell you about hockey and show how it works," Lea happily accepted, only to remember she's still in her pjs and is getting a bit cold. "Just as soon as I put on some warm clothes."


	4. Almost A Happy Ending

Somewhere else in the Ghost Zone, the two Guardians of Fun and Imagination were floating around the eerie ecto-place. Jack kept a good hold on Kate around her waist while flying around.

"Not scared, are you, Jack?" asked Katherine, her voice had that hint of snide.

"Pffft, please. Who do you take me for? The Easter Kangaroo?" Jack scoffed, showing that he wasn't afraid. "Come on, Kathy. I don't see what the big deal is in here. It's not that scary."

Just then, a wispy green ghost with big red eyes flew by Jack with a horrid shriek, making the Guardian yelp and squeeze onto Katherine tighter.

Katherine, whom didn't even flinch from that, just gave a knowing smile at the Spirit of Winter. "You were saying?"

Jack eased a little on his hold with Katherine and continued flying. "Okay, for your information, I wasn't scared. I was caught by surprise from that unexpected ghost," he defended, only to smile deviously. "I got to remember to use something like that on Bunny, one of these days."

The Guardian of Imagination just chuckled lightly. "Don't feel too bad, Jack. I was jumpy when first being here, too."

"You actually used to come here?" Jack questioned, slightly amazed that someone like Kathy would visit a spooky place that's like another dimensional world for the Boogeyman.

"Um…Yeah," Katherine sheepishly admitted. "Remember that story book I got out from the Forbidden Section last night?"

"The one the Man in the Moon chose for you to read? Yeah, what about it?"

"Well, you see…I actually know Ghost Writer personally. Along with a few other good ghosts here," Katherine explained. "Long ago, before meeting the other Guardians and Lea personally, I used to come visit the Ghost Zone to explore and record what was extremely important. Along the way, I found more than just new ancient artifacts, spells, and creepy locations. I found friends that were considered as a second family to me. We would go on adventures around here, train for future battles, or just hang out for fun and relax."

Jack looked over to see Kate smile a bit on the memory, only for it to drop. "So, what made you stop?" he asked.

"I…I'd rather not say," Katherine reluctantly answered. "But that's not important. We came here to rescue our friend and that's exactly what we're going to do."

"INCOMING!" A voice screamed. Jack and Katherine turned at the last second to see a pale ghost girl hurling towards them.

Acting quickly, Jack gently pushed Katherine away and let that ghost crash into him. Luckily, Kate wasn't too far away from him.

"Lindsey?" Katherine questioned, getting a better look at the ghost.

"OFF!" Jack grunted, pushing Lindsey off him.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Lindsey said frantically. "I'm still getting used to flying! I tried walking, but a bunch of skeletons tried to grab me! I was so scared I took off flying and lost control!"

"Skeletons? I thought this was a place for ghost," Jack replied, seriously confused. "And I thought Pitch's lair was disorienting ."

"Lindsey Bates. Friend of the legendary Danny Phantom. This is truly an honor to meet you personally," Katherine greeted.

That surprised Lindsey. "Huh?! How do you know my name?! Who are you guys?!"

"I actually have no idea who you are. I'm just a tourist," Jack remarked, pointing at his Guardian friend. "She's my guide here."

"I am Katherine, Guardian of Imagination and Mother Goose," Katherine answered. "The boy you crashed into is Jack Frost, Guardian of Fun."

Lindsey shook her head in disbelief. "Say what?!" She sighed in annoyance. "This day could not get any more bizarre."

"Weirder than flying green ghosts?" Jack questioned.

"What my associate is trying to say is, perhaps you can explain what happened," Kate replied.

"Okay, long story short..." Lindsey took a deep breath. "My friend, Amorpho, and I are were going to see our friend, Frostbite, to find out about my ghost powers but I somehow sensed that someone was in trouble at the Fright Knight's castle. Turns out, he kidnapped an innocent human to lure me into a trap, but I didn't fall for it!" She gasped for air when she finished.

"Innocent human?! Did it happen to be a girl with blonde curly hair and a tiny wooden toy?" Jack asked.

Lindsey blinked. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"That's our friend, Lea!" Jack exclaimed, quickly grabbing Lindsey by the shoulders and shaking her. "Where is she?! Is Lea okay?!"

"Get it together, Frost," Katherine said sternly to Jack before facing Lindsey. "Sorry. We came here to look for our friend, after we heard she was kidnapped by the Fright Knight while she was sleeping in her room,"

"Well, my friend, Amorpho, managed to help her escape that tin man," said Lindsey. "Perhaps he took her to the Far Frozen for safety."

"I don't know who Amorpho is, but you had me at something frozen," Jack replied, already letting go of Lindsey.

Kate facepalmed, lightly groaning. "Of course. That shapeshifting ghost can be something else."

"I'll say. We better find this Lea before Amorpho scares her half to death." Lindsey looked around. "Um..."

Jack frowned. "Don't know where the Far Frozen is, do you?"

"Nope," Lindsey said quickly. "Amorpho was my GPS before all this happened."

"Guess I'm guiding two people now. At least now we know Lea is placed somewhere safe within the Ghost Zone," Kate stated.

"Do you know where the Far Frozen is, lady?" asked Lindsey.

"Sure do. Frostbite happens to be one of my good ghost friends here," Katherine smiled, now lost in thought. "Huh. I wonder how he and his people are doing? It's been ages since I last visited,"

"Then lead on, Kathy!" said Jack. "And hurry!"

"Just go straight. I'll give you the directions," Katherine said, holding on to Jack. "After all, I can't fly like the rest of you."

"Good point," said Jack, forgetting that Katherine doesn't fly, unlike himself and his new ghost pal.

Lindsey took Jack's other hand before feeling herself takeoff forward. "Yikes! Your hands are like ice!"

"I think I speak for everyone when I say, 'Duh'," said Jack.

Katherine held back a chuckle. "He is Jack Frost, after all. Brings more than snowballs and fun times."

"True," Lindsey shrugged. "So how long before we get to the Far Frozen?"

"Not long! We're here!" said Katherine, pointing at a freezing cold wasteland that's just below them.

Lindsey felt very foolish when they were already at the frozen world. _Are you kidding me?_ she thought. _It was here this whole time and I didn't even know?!_

"Whoa! Now that's a Winter Wonderland!" Jack exclaimed, seriously amazed as he flew down for a closer look.

"Wait until you meet Frostbite," Kate remarked.

"Frostbite?" Jack raised an eyebrow at that, avoiding some icy obstacles at ease.

"Don't worry. He may look like a monster, a terrifying monster. But he's just a big pussycat," said Lindsey.

"And that's saying something, coming from a halfa like you. To think, you used to have a fear plus dislike in all things snow and ice until Frostbite showed you how fun they could be," Katherine remarked, giving a small smirk on that story. "Not to mention completely terrified of him the way Lea reacted when meeting Phil the yeti or North the Guardian of Wonder for the first time."

"Is anyone else confused?" asked Lindsey.

Jack raised a hand.

Katherine chuckled. "Don't worry about it, guys. Here we are!" The three friends landed their feet on the frozen ground.

"Finally! No more flying!" Lindsey yelled to the sky.

"Hey! What's wrong with flying?" Jack questioned, not sure if he should be offended about that.

"Focus, everyone. If I'm right, Frostbite and his people should be up ahead," Katherine firmly stated, already taking the lead.

As they walked forward, the three teens made it to Frostbite's icy village. However, there didn't seem to be anyone around.

"Where is everyone?" said Lindsey. "There's usually a lot of Frostbite's kind around here."

Just then, the sounds of ice being sliced, cracking sounds, and cheering were heard. They were heard again every five seconds.

"What is that?!" asked Katherine.

Jack smiled, now taking the lead. "I'd know that sound anywhere! Follow me!"

The gang followed the sounds to an ice rink arena and spotted Lea playing ice hockey with the yeti-like ghosts.

She also appeared to have on a white sapphire Winter dress that was above her knees, gray legging pants, and midnight blue snow boots with white fur lining on top. Around her waist was something similar to the yeti-ghosts' arm bracelets but more light purple and in the style of a belt. She also had on an icy blue hood and poncho that is above her elbows with white fur lining as well plus an ice crystal holding it together. Her other accessories include fingerless winter gloves that match the color of her dress and the same fur lining around her wrists. Even her crystal bracelet was still on.

The three teens were amazed to see a crowd of yeti-ghosts cheering and enjoying the game. Along with watching Lea in new winter clothes using a metal-like hockey stick with ice to play.

"Guess Lea has been enjoying herself here," Katherine noted, unable to stop smiling.

"Huh. Guess she didn't get scared to death after all. Respect." said Lindsey.

"Oh, trust us. Lea may start out scared, but she easily gets over it," Jack remarked.

"And she's a fan of all things Winter, icy, and cold. So, basically, being at a place like the Far Frozen for Lea is like a Winter Wonderland," Katherine furthered explained.

"Hey, Lea!" called out Jack, waving to his friend to get her attention.

Once hearing a familiar voice, the blonde teen turned her head and gasped.

"JACK?!" Lea swung her stick, her puck hit the goalie yeti right in the gut. "HOLY ICICLES! JACK!" Lea dropped everything and rushed into Jack's arms.

"Whoa! Easy, Hockey Girl," Jack teased, chuckling as he hugged her back before letting got. "Glad to see you, too."

"Jack, Kate, I knew you'd come and find me!" Lea exclaimed, super happy to see her Guardian friends again.

"Of course. As if we'd leave you alone in danger. But it would seem that you already made a few new friends that helped you out," Katherine stated.

"You have no idea," Lea replied. She then saw Lindsey looking at her. "Oh, hi. I don't think we've met personally. I'm Lea. What's your name?"

"Lindsey. What's up?" Lindsey waved. "So, have you seen a ghost in a black trench coat and no face around here?"

"You mean Amorpho? I think he's somewhere in the crowd holding Nightlight," Lea answered. "At first, I thought he was some faceless ghost creep who wanted to steal my face. But, after knowing him, Amorpho's actually not so bad. And he, along with Frostbite, seems to find Nightlight very intriguing."

"Yikes! I wouldn't want Amorpho steaking my face!" Lindsey blinked. "But then again, he can make his face whatever he wants."

"Make his face whatever he wants?" Jack asked, not sure if he heard correctly.

Lea nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah, I already realized that, before Frostbite gave me these new warm clothes. He imitated Nightlight and almost fooled me, if he hadn't given himself away immediately."

"How so?" Katherine asked.

"Well, for one thing, Nightlight can't talk nor does he have red eyes. I might have grabbed some nearby ice-metal and whacked him away from me," Lea admitted sheepishly. "I swear, I didn't mean to. It was a quick reaction."

Jack couldn't help but laugh at that scenario. "Oh, man! Can't believe we missed seeing that!"

"Indeed." said a voice behind Jack.

The Winter Guardian turned and gasped when seeing Amorpho holding an ice pack against his cheek. Along with Nightlight on his shoulder waving hello.

"WHOA!" Jack jumped back at the sight of the faceless ghost.

Lea winced slightly when seeing the faceless ghost again. "Again, I am really sorry I smacked you, Amorpho."

"Nice to actually see you, Amorpho. Glad to know that you're still mischief yet playful in your artistic creepy way," Katherine remarked.

"And you two have half a second to stop talking before I get angry..." The annoyed ghost warned.

"Take it easy, buddy. They're not the bad guys here." said Lindsey. She put a hand on her ghost friend's shoulder.

"So, you managed to escape the Fright Knight?" Amorpho asked. "I'm surprised you're still in one piece."

"Yeah, it's weird. He dropped a bomb on me, offered me a deal he thought I couldn't refuse. But I did...but for some reason, he took it awfully well. I thought he was gonna end me."

"That is surprising. Even so, whatever deal Fright Knight tried to offer you, I'm glad that you didn't fall for it. He's a dangerous ghost in this world," Katherine replied.

"I'll say. Can't believe he tried to scare me to death. I don't even know him nor am I from this dimension," Lea replied.

"You knew that this wasn't part of your dimensional world?" Jack questioned.

"Well, yeah. Mysterious portals. Realm full of ghosts. A savior that's half human, half ghost in both here and the human world. It's definitely another parallel universe," Lea replied, picking Nightlight up from Amorpho's shoulder and placing it on her own. "If I hadn't gone through danger and alternate dimensions recorded from Kate before, I'd probably lose it by now,"

"True. But you seem to have handled the situation well on your own," Katherine stated. "Especially when coming across a few good ghosts here."

"Definitely. Once I realized it was just Amorpho and apologized, Frostbite came and asked what kind of skill I just did. I explained to him it was from one of my favorite sports and I use it a lot for either defense or fun," Lea clarified. "Turns out, Frostbite and his people never even heard of hockey and asked how to play it."

"And that's when you began taking it outside at the arena and played from there until we showed up?" Katherine concluded.

"Pretty much. They happen to get the rules and technique of this sport down very quickly than I expected,"

"You know, I'm not even surprised about all of this. For a tribe of ghost-like yeti warriors skilled with medicines and technology that have lived in a frozen wasteland for nearly a millennium, Frostbite and his people do try to find their entertainment where they can get it when things get dull," Katherine stated with a smile.

Heavy footsteps were heard and Frostbite came into view. "Ah, Lea! There you are!"

"Frostbite! These are my friends I told you about. Katherine and Jack Frost," Lea introduced.

"I see that! The Story Keeper and Bringer of Winter! How wonderful it is to see new and familiar faces,"

Jack turned and became even more surprised. "Whoa! It's like seeing a better version of Phil," he replied.

Kate held back a chuckle before giving a pleasant smile. "Hello, Frostbite. Very nice to see you again. Thanks for looking after Lea."

"My pleasure! Lea, how would you like to see a little something we've been working on in the lab?" Frostbite offered.

"You bet!" said Lea, very excited.

"Ghost-yetis who have their own lab and know how to have fun? This I have to see," Jack said, smirking as he followed his friend.

Katherine, Lindsey, and Amorpho just walked slowly behind.

* * *

Not too long, Frostbite brought his guests to his lab. " Behold, Lea, our greatest invention to date!"

Lea gasped in amazement when being at the lab. The place was an icy cave but with high-tech inventions being tested by other yeti-ghosts.

"It's like being in a Sci-Fi Winter movie scene," Lea replied.

"This just became one of my top ten favorite places to hang out at now," Jack said, studying the place while putting his staff on his shoulders.

Just then, Lea finally took notice of what Frostbite wanted to show her. It looked like a small pole in the shape of any normal weapons, only sleeker and shinier. Similar to ice.

"What is that?" Lea asked, getting closer for a better look.

"This is the Crystal Shifter!" said Frostbite, now picking it up and handing it to Lea. "It can become any weapon you envision it to be!"

"Whoa, seriously!? Does it even work?" Lea asked, already grabbing it with her right hand and feeling it with the other.

"Well, give it a try. Imagine what weapon you want in your hand. Then, give it a squeeze in the middle," Frostbite instructed.

Lea imagined what she wanted. She gave it a squeeze and, in an instant, the staff became a hockey stick!

"No. Way! Frostbite, this is beyond amazing!" the blonde teen exclaimed, giving the Crystal Shifter a small spin to get a better feel of it.

Jack couldn't help but grin in slight admiration. "Looks like someone found her perfect weapon match."

"Come on, Jack. This may seem neat, but it's not mine," Lea reasoned, already giving it another squeeze to turn the Crystal Shifter back to its original form. "It belongs to Frostbite's people. I'm not even sure what it's made of that gives the Crystal Shifter its abilities."

"Ghost ice. What else?" asked Frostbite with a fanged smile. "I guarantee you that this will come in handy for the future! And I definitely want you to have it."

Lea looked at the weapon. Perhaps Frostbite was right. In a world where spooky, nightmarish ghosts were real, she had to defend herself somehow. "You know, I think you have a point. I'll take it."

"So, now that that's taken care of. How do we send Lea home?" asked Jack.

"Leave that part to me," Katherine replied with a smile, whom was with Lindsey and Amorpho.

The Guardian of Imagination opened up her satchel and brought up the book that showed the Storyteller's mission with her right hand.

"Whenever a story is complete and has its good ending, this should send all four of us back home to our world," Katherine explained, counting Nightlight.

"In that case, I better say my goodbyes to the new friends I made," Lea replied, already hugging Frostbite. "Thanks for looking after me, Frostbite. And thank you, Amorpho and Lindsey. I definitely owe you two for saving me from Fright Knight."

Lindsey blinked in realization. "That reminds me..." She delivered a hard slap to the back of Amorpho's head, knocking his hat off.

"OW!"

"THAT was for literally throwing me into my worst fear!" Lindsey snapped.

Frostbite chuckled and gave Lea a hug. "You're welcome to visit us anytime you want, Miss Lea."

This scene made the Guardian of Fun smile caringly. He was glad that his human companion made another icy friend from another world.

"You know, I'm actually gonna miss this place," Jack admitted to Katherine, putting his staff down to lean his weight on it. "Maybe one of these days, we can come back and visit."

"Well, I'm not sure about staying here for long. Especially since it's in the Forbidden Section and all," Katherine shrugged, still weary of that option. "But yeah. Maybe."

"See ya around, buddy," Lea replied with a grin, already finishing her hug and regrouping with her Guardian friends after saying her goodbyes. "Okay, Kate. I'm ready. Let's go home."

Nodding, Katherine used her left hand to open book…only to have it still shut closed. This caused Kate to open her eyes and look at the book in confusement.

"Uh, Kathy? Anytime you want to open that book and get us out now," Jack replied.

"That's what I'm trying to do," Katherine specified, struggling to open the book by slightly grumbling. "It…Won't…Budge!"

"Uh, okay, Kate. You can stop joking," Lea chuckled nervously, really hoping this was all just a prank.

After stopping her book opening, Kate sighed from exhaustion and looked up with a worried plus petrified expression. "I'm afraid that I am not. I think we're stuck here."

"WHAT?!" Jack and Lea exclaimed together in complete disbelief.


	5. Tools and Tricks of the Trade

"Y-You mean...we're stuck in this g-g-ghost world forever?!" Lea's eyes rolled back and she fainted, falling through Amorpho.

"Okay, let's take a deep breath and calm down," Jack gently informed, putting away his staff and helped pick up Lea bridal style with Nightlight fanning her to wake up. "I'm sure Kathy has some explanation to why her crazy book isn't opening. Like she got the wrong book."

"Impossible. I never get the wrong book, and this is clearly the one we're living through right now," Katherine defended.

"Then what's problem? Your magic book showed us that Lea was in danger and lost somewhere in this ghostly realm. We came here, met Lindsey, ended up in the Far Frozen, and found Lea safe and well thanks to a group of ice-yeti ghosts. That should be it,"

"I know, but the book begs to differ," Katherine kept trying to open the novel yet seemed to lock itself up. "This has never happened before. There still must be some unfinished business that needs to be taken care of here."

Jack took a moment to think about that. "Didn't you say something about you being buddies with a Ghost Writer? Maybe that's it."

Katherine felt her heart race, tiny bits of sweat form on her forehead. "W-what?! No, of course not! I mean, there's no way it involves the Ghost Writer. Look, I know another way to get to the bottom of this mystery. There's a ghost here that can see and know all events that may or may not come to pass. If anyone knows, it's definitely him."

"Um, are you, by any chance, referring to Clockwork, Madame?" asked Amorpho, as he nervously adjusted his hat.

"Yes, I am referring to Clockwork," Katherine stated, now putting her book back inside her satchel.

"Will no one tell me who Clockwork is!?" Jack questioned, starting to get annoyed by being left in the dark on the situation.

"He's a ghost capable of manipulating time." said Frostbite. "No ghost in this realm is foolish enough to cross paths with him!"

"Yikes! That's a ghost I want to avoid!" said Lindsey.

"I better go with you on this one, Kathy," Jack volunteered. "From what these ghosts are saying, this Clockwork guy sounds just as dangerous as Pitch."

Katherine shot a glare. "No, Jack. I am going to Clockwork by myself. You are staying here with Lea where it's safe."

"Kathy, you can't be serious! There's no way I'm leaving you on your own," Jack argued.

"You're both safer here in the Far Frozen than anywhere else in the Ghost Zone," Katherine reasoned. "I'm the only one who knows Clockwork better than anyone, and where he lives. Besides, I can't let you suffer because of me."

"I'm with Kathy on this." said Lindsey. "Let's just lay low here."

Jack shot a glare at the Ghost Girl, since this wasn't her problem.

"Great. Now that that's settled, Frostbite will keep an eye on you while I'll go see Clockwork," Katherine replied, already walking out of the icy caverns.

"Kathy, wait!" Jack exclaimed, already giving a knocked-out Lea to Frostbite before hurrying to catch up. "You can't even fly without-"

But just as he got out, Jack saw that Katherine was already gone. "...Me."

If only he knew that Katherine was actually above the icy hills to see that Jack came out to stop her. Even though the gateway back to Lea's dimension is closed, it doesn't mean she can't she use her abilities to jump to different places around the Ghost Zone by having the book close to her. The Female Guardian looked down and sighed.

"I'm sorry, Jack...But this is what I've trained for," Katherine muttered, already focusing deeply to create a green portal that led her straight to where she wanted to go before going through it.

* * *

Back in the lab, Lea woke up from her fainting spell. "Oh, what happened?" She looked up and saw Amorpho looming over her. "EEEE!" She scrambled away from the ghost.

"Relax, Lea. It's just Amorpho," Jack replied, tightening his grip on his staff hard when walking back. He seemed a bit annoyed and mad.

"Oh. Right. So, what did I miss?" Lea asked, calming down as she got back up.

"Well, Kathy abandoned us to see a ghost named Clockwork." Jack said harshly.

"Jack! She has unfinished business to take care of, which is why we're stuck here!" said Lindsey. "This is something she has to do alone."

"What are you talking about!? You're not even from our world!" Jack retorted to Lindsey. "Only Lea, Nightlight, Kathy, and myself live in a different alternate earth. This has nothing to do with you!"

That made Lea think carefully. "Wait a minute...Jack's right! We don't belong in this world! So how come the Fright Knight manage to kidnap me? Of all people, why not find someone from Lindsey's human world instead of mine?"

Lindsey blinked. "That's...a good question. Why would he do that?"

"Well, nonetheless, this will be a perfect opportunity to test out your new weapon, Miss Lea!" said Frostbite.

"I guess so," Lea replied, looking down to see Nightlight holding it for her. She smiled and picked Nightlight up. "Thanks, buddy."

"I'm coming, too. There's some frustration I want to let out," Jack replied, still not getting over what happened.

* * *

Back at the ice rink, Lea had her Crystal Shifter weapon in the form of a hockey stick.

"Really? Is a hockey stick the best you can think of?" questioned the Guardian of Fun.

"What? It's my best weapon of defense I use a lot," Lea reasoned. "And you're the one carrying a shepherd's staff around."

"This staff can freeze dry you in an instant!" Jack retorted.

"Which is why I'm keeping Nightlight away from the crossfire," Lea stated, placing her wooden toy at the bleachers between Lindsey and Amorpho before getting back into the game. "Or cross-'ice', so to speak. Besides, if Frostbite says that this Crystal Shifter is powerful, then it should work ten times stronger than a regular hockey stick."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Please! That thing is better off scoring goals than cracking skulls."

Lea was getting annoyed by Jack's attitude. The Crystal Shifter started to glow as she took a slap shot stance. "Ya mean like _THIS_?!" A puck made of ice formed in front of the hockey blade part. Lea hit it with all her might and sent it hurling toward Jack.

"WHOA!" Jack Frost quickly jumped out of the way and swung his staff to shoot an ice blast back.

Acting fast, Lea concentrated to turn her hockey weapon into a shield to protect her from Jack's frost attack. This, of course, only gave her a small push back.

"What was that?!" Jack exclaimed.

Lea stared. "I think...I almost killed you." she said numbly.

"Okay, I know I wanted to blow off steam, but this may be a bit too far," Jack stated.

"I'll say. I didn't even know I could do that!" Lea replied honestly. "I feel both disturbed and amazed."

Jack sighed, now flying over to Lea before landing in front of her. "Look, I'm sorry. I just can't stop thinking about Kathy getting in trouble. She's been acting weird the whole trip, since last night at the Ganderly."

"What do you mean?" Lea asked.

"While coming to save you through the Ghost Zone, Kathy seemed upset about something after telling me she used to come and visit some friends here. She couldn't tell me why, though."

"Hold on. Kate actually use to visit here?! In the Ghost Zone?!" This baffled the blonde teen. "How come she never told me before?"

"Probably because she once mentioned that this place can only be found in a series that's locked up in the Forbidden Section," Jack shrugged, now using his staff to draw on the ice with frost. "Which brings up the weird behavior I mentioned before. The other night, I saw Katherine reading a story request from the Man in the Moon. It was a book she got from the Forbidden Section and about a ghost that's from this phantom dimension."

"That is weird. And how did Kate react?" Lea questioned.

"A bit surprised and reluctant. It was like whatever the Man in the Moon told her to read scared the pants off her," Jack then finished his work to reveal the same silhouette MiM showed to Katherine.

Lea studied the image and turned her head slightly in confusement. "What was the book called? The one Katherine was requested to read, I mean."

"It was titled, _'The Tale of a Ghost Writer'_. Or something like that,"

"Never heard of it," Lea admitted, now looking back at Lindsey, Amorpho, and Frostbite to signal them to come over to see what Jack drew. "Does this image or the name 'Ghost Writer' mean anything to either of you?"

Frostbite and Amorpho blinked with realization.

Lindsey just shrugged. "Never seen him personally, but the name sounds familiar."

That was true. The only time she recalled hearing about the Ghost Writer was from her friend, Danny, during that one Christmas at Amity Park. How he once trapped Danny in a Christmas Poem until he learned his lesson for destroying the Ghost Writer's hard work with no hint of remorse.

"I have," said Frost Bite. "With his keyboard, the Ghost Writer is able to control reality by turning it and trapping people into a story of his own."

"And since he's a self-proclaimed writer, everything he types into that keyboard comes true." said Amorpho.

"Sounds like Katherine, except she's more old-fashioned when it comes to recording important events," Lea replied, only to gasp a horrible thought. "You don't think he's the one trapping us here, do you?"

"I wouldn't put it pass him. From what I can tell, he's our best bet in getting us back home," Jack said, placing his hands in his jacket pocket.

"I hope so." Lea looked around nervously. "Um, if...by any chance, I end up here too long...do I turn into a ghost myself?"

"Oh, yes." Amorpho chuckled. "It's only a matter of time!"

Lea started to squeal with panic until Lindsey smacked Amorpho upside the head. "Knock it off!" She turned to Lea. "Don't listen to him. He's just messing with you."

The blonde teen sighed. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

Meanwhile, Katherine was continuing on her quest. Soon, she found herself at a building filled with time-related objects, such as clocks, gears, and bells. This was the lair of Clockwork.

"Okay, this is it. Hopefully, Clockwork can help me out," Katherine muttered gently to herself, already knocking the door for him to open.

"Hello?" Katherine called out. "HELLO?! HELLO!"

No response. The place was, well, dead.

"Oh, come on!" Katherine groaned, realizing that no one was home and stomped her foot in frustration. "Goose feathers! The one time I needed that infuriating Time Ghost and he's not in his own household?!" she protested in anger, banging on the door with both her fists and her forehead softly pressed to it.

Katherine never felt so stumped in a story situation like this. Being stuck at the Ghost Zone is one thing. But having her friends trapped with the same fate? It just didn't seem right.

"Perhaps...maybe...I need to talk to him after all," said Katherine in defeat, knowing she's gonna regret doing this.

Just then, she heard a faint growl that made her turn around and get out her dagger. But there appeared to be no one around. Then again, whoever is watching might be intangible and invisible.

"Who's there?!" said Katherine.

"Kiu vi estas?" said a gruff, accented voice.

Gasping, Kate recognized that language anywhere.

"Wulf? Ĉu vere vi estas?" she replied back. "Estas mi. Katherine."

As a Guardian who has been around for hundreds of years, Katherine has studied all the type of languages from people and animals. Including Esperanto.

"KATHERINE!" A massive, wolf-like ghost appeared and pounced on Katherine. The creature licked Katherine's face with slobbery dog kisses.

He appeared to be a large, muscular black werewolf or anthropomorphic wolf, with large saber teeth and green pupil-less eyes. Along with sharp clawed nails. He also has on a worn-out green sweatshirt with a hood that is kept down, and tattered green pants.

Katherine couldn't help but laugh in enjoyment, very happy to see another friendly face. "Ohohohokay, okay! I miss you too, Wulf. Hahahahahahaha, haltu!"

Wulf stopped slobbering and helped Katherine up. The Guardian hugged the huge and hairy ghost. "Oh, Wulf! I missed you! I can't believe you remember me after all these years!"

"Kvazaŭ mi forgesis iun kiel vi, kiu parolas kaj komprenas la saman lingvon kiel mi," Wulf remarked, nuzzling Katherine's face with his that made her chuckle.

"True. I happen to be the only one who speaks and understands your language completely," she agreed and stopped hugging, only to look concern by placing a caring hand on his scarred side-face. "What are you doing here? You know you can't stay here at the Ghost Zone. Walker is out there looking for you and won't rest until he locks you up. Please, head back to Amity Park and go back with Danny Phantom."

"Ne antaŭ ol mi helpas vin. Vi volas vidi Ghost Writer. Ĉu vi?" Wulf questioned.

"You mean...you can take me to the Ghost Writer?" asked Katherine with a hopeful heart.

"Kompreneble, mia amiko!"

Katherine smiled, only to look down in doubt and rub her arms anxiously. "But...what if he's mad at me? Do you think he'll forgive me, after what I did?" she questioned, feeling guilty and letting a small tear fall from her cheek.

"Estas nur unu maniero eltrovi." Wulf offered his clawed hand. "Prenu tiun salton de fido."

"Take that leap of faith..." Katherine tried to think of an excuse to get out of this. But Wulf's wise words prevented her from doing so. "Alright, let's do this, Amiko." She took Wulf's hand.

And so, Wulf and Katherine were now off flying through the Ghost Zone in search for Ghost Writer.

_'I hope Jack and Lea are doing well back at the Far Frozen,' _Katherine thought to herself.

* * *

"GOOOOOAL!" Lea cheered as she scored several ice pucks into a net.

Frostbite clapped his hands. "Well done, Lea! You're getting the hang of this already!"

Jack chuckled deeply, already sitting down at the edge very cool-like. "Okay. I have to admit; your choice of weaponry is not so bad."

"Thank you, " Lea replied, twirling her Crystal Shifter around. "I'm glad that I was able to do some practice on this first before heading back home."

"Speaking of home, anyone know how long it's been since Kathy left?" Jack asked, actually concerned for her on the inside.

"Maybe if we met that Clockwork guy, he'll know." said Lindsey, before taking a sip of her hot chocolate.

"Seriously, how could you all be okay with any of this?!" Jack nearly yelled, standing up and walking on top of the edge of the arena and balanced himself like it was nothing. "Doesn't anyone think that Kathy's visit to Clockwork is a waste of time? We all know that it involves Ghost Writer, and it's obvious that she's avoiding him for a reason. There's no way Kathy will solve this problem on her own."

Amorpho sighed. "Tell you what, boy. Why don't I escort you to the Ghost Writer's Manor and find out if Miss Katherine is as helpless as you think she is?"

"I never said she's helpless, Faceless Phantom. Just that she needs support and backup," Jack corrected, giving Amorpho a sharp glare before gently jumping down from the stand. "But yeah. Take me to his place."

"If you're going, then I'm coming with you. I can understand how hard it must be for Kate to see old loved ones and friends, after not seeing each other for many years," Lea replied empathetically.

The blonde teen knew from experience on that situation. And, to think, it took a certain Wolfblood friend to help her break the ice in seeing her cousins again personally.

"So, we're on the same page?" Jack asked with a small grin.

"That we should look for Ghost Writer and bring him to Kate so she can face her fears?" Lea replied, smiling back and folding her arms confidently. "Definitely."

"I'll go, too." said Lindsey.

"You?!" Amorpho questioned in shock.

"Yes, me." Lindsey stood up. "Amorpho, I don't know what's coming over me. But I feel that I should go with you. I mean, you're one of my best ghost friends. If something happened to you and I wasn't there to stop that, I would never forgive myself!"

"Lindsey, you don't have to join us. It's our fight, not yours," Lea said. "Katherine is our friend. She has done so much for us and is out there risking her life just to get us back to our dimensional world. Now, we have to help and protect her."

Knowing she can't win the argument, Lindsey sighed. "Fine."

"Hang on, Lea. Lindsey is doing the same thing you would have done when I was in trouble," Jack reasoned, placing a hand on Lea's shoulder. "Besides, someone has to keep Mr. Spooky under control along the way."

Thinking about it, Lea nodded her head. "You're right, Jack. Family and friends should stay together," she said to her Frosty Friend before looking at the Female Ghost. "Lindsey, you can come with us on our mission."

"Great! Thanks," Lindsey smiled as she hurried over.

Just then, Lea felt a tap on her boots and looked down to see Nightlight getting her attention. He held his arms up, saying that he's coming along, too.

The blonde teen chuckled before picking him up and placing him on her left shoulder to sit down on. "As if I'd leave you behind. Looks like we're ready."

"All right! Those who can't fly, please climb aboard the Frost Express!" Jack replied, giving another one of his signature smiles as he hooked his free arm with Lea's.

Lea couldn't help but laugh heartily at the Guardian of Fun's charisma. Even at dire situations, he knew how to make her feel at ease.

"Frostbite. Thanks again for keeping Lea safe. If we do end up getting back home, might as well say goodbye for now," Jack said to the Yeti Ghost Leader.

"Again, it was my pleasure, Bringer of Winter. Miss Lea and her Nightlight Friend were no trouble at all," Frostbite assured with a smile. "And you are all welcome to return whenever you wish. The Far Frozen is forever opened to friends of the Ghost Zone Savior and Great Storytelling Keeper."

Lea gave a caring grin before feeling herself being lifted off the ground by Jack Frost. "Until next time! I'll take great care of the Crystal Shifter and tell you my progress!" she cried from above while waving goodbye.

Before leaving, Jack Frost used his staff to create some special frost designs across Frostbite's village by summoning a flurry trail behind him.

"Just couldn't help yourself, could you, Frost?" Lea stated with a playful grin, watching what her Winter Friend did.

"Hey, you're the one teaching those guys your favorite sport and you don't hear me complaining about it," Jack remarked.

Lea just chuckled and shook her head. He never ceases to amaze the blonde teen.


	6. Turning the Page

Through the Ghost Zone, Katherine and Wulf continued flying until they arrived at the Ghost Writer's Manor. It looked just like a library in the human world. A library made of large marbled books.

"Here we are…At Ghost Writer's Manor…" Katherine stated, getting butterflies in her stomach.

Just then, the Guardian of Imagination couldn't stop thinking about her fate. _What if he's still mad? What if he traps me in his own dark poems for all eternity? Or worse, what if he types me off into non-existence?!_Kate thought to herself in horror, not realizing she was quivering.

She fisted her right hand and was ready to knock on his door. However, Katherine couldn't do it. She reluctantly put her hand down and stepped back.

"I…I can't do it. I'm sorry, Wulf, but I just can't do it!" Katherine exclaimed, tears nearly forming in her eyes when pacing back and forth. "How can I show my face to him after everything I did? I should have just stayed and let my fate destroy me, instead of leaving such good friends here for so many years! It's better than living with so much guilt and pain that's been haunting me from the start!"

As she began to weep, Wulf put his gentle arms around Katherine.

"Mi timas, Wulf..." Katherine muttered, letting her tears fall and touch his soft black fur.

Suddenly, the doors opened very slowly...

Katherine could hear them creaking behind her. She didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

It was him. The Ghost Writer himself. He appeared to have completed another masterpiece book of his spooky written work and was taking a break with a cup of ghost coffee to drink outside his place. When he took one look at Katherine, the Ghost Writer stopped dead at his tracks in complete shock; causing him to drop his book and coffee cup.

"Katherine?" he questioned under his breath, not sure if this was really happening.

Unable to take it anymore, Katherine let got go of Wulf and just ran into Ghost Writer with her arms around him that caught the author specter off guard. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It's all my fault!" she admitted, covering her face on Ghost Writer's shoulder in sadness. "I never should have left the Ghost Zone because of some pointless vision involving my life ending here! I've regretted abandoning you and the others since I said my goodbyes! And I still do!"

The more Katherine confessed, the worse she felt. Her heart had never hurted like this in such a long time.

"I don't care what terrible fate you have in store for me. I deserve this punishment! All I want is for you to let Jack Frost, Nightlight, and Lea go. They have nothing to do with any of this and deserve to head back to their proper dimension safely," Katherine reasoned, already lowering her head and crying her eyes out. "Please, Stephen! I'm begging you!"

But, to Katherine's amazement and shock, Stephen put his arms around her in a deep embrace. "Who cares about all that?" he said. "I'm just so happy to see you again." Tears dripped from his eyes.

"Y-you are?!" Katherine asked, choking from her own tears. "You're not mad at me or gonna punish me by trapping me in your dark poem books for eternity?"

"What? No. Of course not. I've missed you too much to do that."

Katherine gave a small laugh, trying to calm down from all her crying but was having a hard time in doing that.

Wulf smiled, as he and Stephen helped the Guardian inside.

"Dankon, Wulf," Katherine replied, lifting her head to him with a smile.

"Ne dankinde," Wulf answered back, as he watched Kate wipe her fallen tears.

Once going inside, she saw many spooky-themed books flying up the endless shelves.

"I see the manor hasn't lost its ghostly touch," Kate replied.

"Indeed." said Stephen. "Nice and haunted, just the way I like it. Shall I take your coat?"

Kate smiled sweetly. "You may."

The Ghost Writer kindly took Katherine's coat and placed it on a coat tree made of books. "Shall I serve tea?"

"Yes, please. My throat is a bit sore from earlier," Katherine politely said, placing a hand on her neck to rub gently.

In the sitting room, a tea tray floated over to Katherine and the teapot poured a cup of its contents for Katherine. She took the tea and sipped. "Mmm! Delicious!"

"Yes, it's an old recipe that warms you to the bone."

Katherine lightly chuckled at that response. "I can tell. Thank you, Stephen. A lot has happened since we last saw each other."

"Really? Well, I guess a lot can happen since we last saw each other." said Stephen. "Such as?"

"To start, you know that Winter Spirit I used to tell you about?" Katherine asked.

"You don't mean Jack Frost, do you?" Stephen asked. His voice was filled with concern. "He's not giving you any problems, is he?"

"What? No! I mean, yes, I'm talking about Jack Frost, but no, he has not given me any problems at all," Katherine assured, blushing a bit. "He finally found his center and is now a Guardian like me. I even made friends with a human teen girl who admires the stories I write about."

Stephen blinked, sharing a confused look with Wulf. "Guess anything can happen in the afterlife. So, why, after all this time...did you come back?"

Katherine sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, you see...Fright Knight kidnapped Lea, the human girl I previously mentioned, and brought her here into the Ghost Zone. By the time I found out, Jack and I hurried here to rescue her. We got to meet Lindsey Bates, another halfa and friend of Danny. Along with seeing Amorpho and Frostbite again. Turns out, Lea was rescued by Amorpho and Lindsey, and then brought to the Far Frozen until Jack and I could pick her up. However, my book couldn't let us leave,"

"Hmm...that is strange." Stephen rubbed his chin. "Is it because...of me?"

"I think it might. I was going to ask for Clockwork's assistance but, somehow, he wasn't home. Then, Wulf showed up and offered to take me here," Katherine replied, looking down shamefully. "And, before this whole situation, Man in Moon requested me to read a certain book about someone I know from here in the Ghost Zone, but I didn't have the heart to even finish reading it."

"Well, you came this far, Katherine. I think you should finish what has begun." Stephen said seriously.

Katherine gently sighed. "...I believe you're right. The problem is, that book is locked up and back home in the Ganderly. How can I finish reading it if the way back to my dimensional world is closed?"

Wulf tapped Stephen on the shoulder and whispered an idea in the Ghost Writer's ear.

Katherine raised an eyebrow on what Wulf is telling Stephen. "Wulf, what is it?"

Stephen smiled and stood up. "KATHERINE! Wulf just gave me a brilliant idea. It's time to start a new story!"

"W-What?!" Katherine asked, standing up.

Stephen took Katherine's hand. "My dear Katherine. Together, we write a new story to end this one!"

Now understanding, Katherine gave a determine look and nodded. "You're right, Stephen. I couldn't finish the story by myself. But I might be able to, with the right partner. And who better than the Ghost Poet himself?"

Stephen gave a nod. "Then let's do it."

Katherine grinned in agreement. "Where should we start?"

**KA-BOOOM!**

The wall exploded and Lea, Jack, Lindsey, and Amorpho stormed in.

"ALRIGHT! NOBODY MOVE!" Lea yelled, wielding her Crystal Shifter up that is in the form of a hockey stick.

"Oh, no," Katherine facepalmed, lowering her head in embarrassment.

"Ghost Writer, we need you to come with us to talk to our friend, Katherine!" Jack informed.

"We already did, Jack,"

Everyone turned their heads to notice Katherine was right next to Ghost Writer. A long, awkward pause came and left Kate's friends baffled.

"What?" Jack managed to say, breaking the silence.

"Jack, we literally just talked it through, just now." clarified Katherine.

"Oh..." Now Jack felt totally foolish. He hadn't felt like this since he discovered that he forgot to leave gifts for kids after collecting their teeth for Tooth.

"Sorry about destroying your wall," Lea apologized, only to notice Wulf and slightly panic. "AHHH! Don't sick your dog on us!" she screamed, hiding behind Jack.

"WULF!" Lindsey cried in happiness. Wulf gleefully panted and tackled Lindsey. He licked her face with doggie kisses. "Ahahahahahahaha! I missed you too, boy!"

Lea, along with Amorpho and Jack, were both surprised on this.

"What exactly is going on here?" Lea asked.

"Yeah, I thought you were wasting your time on talking to Clockwork and not have the courage to talk to Ghost Writer?" Jack exclaimed to Katherine, seriously more lost than ever.

"And how does Lindsey know Ghost Writer's guard dog?" Lea added.

"To be clear, he's not my guard dog," Ghost Writer simplified. "I don't own pets. Way too much responsibility that will keep me from my writing."

"Long story for me," said Lindsey, as she scratched Wulf's belly.

"And since Clockwork was unavailable," Katherine rolled her eyes. "I decided to talk to Stephen myself...with Wulf's help, of course."

"Stephen?" Lea questioned, looking at her wooden toy in confusement, whom just shrugged his shoulders to say he had no clue either.

"I think that's the Ghost Writer's actual name," Jack guessed. "Kathy revealed his name once to me before, last night."

"I take it that these are the friends you told me earlier?" Ghost Writer asked Katherine.

Katherine sighed hard and placed a hand on her forehead. "Unfortunately, yes. Stephen, meet Lea Carolina Thompson, her childhood companion Nightlight, and Jack Frost."

Stephen bowed politely. "A pleasure." His eyes trailed off to a certain faceless ghost. "Amorpho? Long time, no see. Still pulling your little poltergeist pranks?"

Amorpho harrumphed and adjusted his hat. "Hardly! My pranks are genius and are not to be compared with mere amateurs such as poltergeists. But I decided to retire."

After hearing the name, Wulf perked his head up and stood right back up after Lindsey's belly rub. "Jack Frost? Kiel en la glacia amiko, pri kiu vi parolis al mi?"

"Uh, what did he say?" Lea questioned.

"Oh, Wulf is asking about Jack. He only speaks Esperanto, a type of language created plus known around late 19th century," Kate explained to Lea before facing Wulf. "Jes, Wulf. Ĉi tiu estas la Vintro-Spirito pri kiu mi rakontis. Li eĉ odoras Vintro kun la odoro de pinoj."

Curious, Wulf moved towards a slightly startled Jack Frost and began sniffing the boy with his doggie snout. He moved around the cold boy, sniffing his hair, his jacket, his feet, even his butt.

"Hey, hey, hey! Bad ghost dog! Don't make me freeze you!" Jack warned, waving his staff.

After finishing, Wulf gave Jack a smile and licked his face. "Vi pravas, mia amikino. Li flaras kiel Vintro!"

"Told ya," Katherine remarked with a playful grin, placing a hand on her mouth to prevent herself from laughing on that whole scene.

Jack gagged as he wiped Wulf drool off his face.

"So, Katherine. Care to explain all this?" asked Lindsey.

"Yeah, Kathy. What is going on here?" Jack asked firmly. "And don't keep hiding anymore secrets. We all know that the reason we're stuck here has something to do with him," he stated while pointing at Ghost Writer.

"And by 'we', Jack means 'himself'. I seriously don't know what is happening," Lea admitted.

Katherine knew that she's got some explaining to do. "Well...I did used to come here into the Ghost Zone. Way before Jack became a Guardian and all that. Ghost Writer-or Stephen-is a ghost friend I shared a deep connection with," she looked down shamefully. "The real reason I stopped coming was because, during my past adventures, I got a vision of where my story ends forever...And it was somewhere in the Ghost Zone."

"WHAT?!" Lea shouted before Jack could. "What do you mean end forever?!"

"I mean it's where I..." Katherine had a hard time explaining by rubbing her arm. "Where I perish, because in the Ghost Zone, ghosts CAN get hurt! There, I said it."

"What exactly happened in that vision of yours?" Jack questioned, both curious and suspicious. "How do you perish?"

"All I got was that I was in the Ghost Zone, and the next thing I knew, I couldn't feel anything. Just a pain through my chest and I stopped breathing," Katherine placed her hands on her face. "After that, I decided to not take any chances and said my goodbyes to the friends I made at this dimension before leaving. But ever since then, I knew I made a horrible mistake. I felt bad and couldn't forgive myself."

Her lips began to tremble as Wulf whimpered, hugging to comfort Katherine.

"Kathy, why didn't you tell me before? Or any of us?" Jack asked, walking forward until he was close to her.

"I...I was too afraid and ashamed. I thought you wouldn't understand what I was going through," Katherine admitted.

"Not understand? Kate, how could you say that?!" Lea exclaimed. "Of course, we understand! I stopped seeing my cousins for five years all because my grandparents passed away. But I got to see them again, after so long, because I realize that I was only pushing myself away from being with my family."

"Yeah! You were doing the exact same thing Lea did!" Jack said. "You don't have to be such a loner! You're one of us!"

Katherine looked up to see Jack's determine icy snowflake eyes. What he said was the absolute truth. "...I guess you're right. I spent so much time working alone as a secret guardian, I never knew what it was like to actually be a part of the Guardians of Childhood."

"Then I say we shelf this story and finally begin anew!" said Stephen.

Katherine turned her head to Ghost Writer and smiled. "Indeed."

"Shelf this story and begin anew?" Jack repeated, tilting his head a bit.

"Stephen and I believe that the only way out is writing a new story that should be able to get us back home," Katherine explained. "Which we were about to do before all of you charged in like Stephen was about to attack."

Lea's face was a bit red in embarrassment on that one. "Again, sorry. We honestly didn't know what to expect."

"It's fine. Not the first-time people came barging at my place," Ghost Writer assured, as he took out his trusty typewriter. "Let's begin!"

Katherine nodded and went over to begin. "Might want to give us some space. This could take a while. Can't rush a good story,"


	7. Future Tense

In the study of Ghost Writer's Manor, everyone waited for Katherine and Stephen to return.

"How long until they're done?" Lea wondered out loud.

"Don't look at me. I've never written books before," Jack shrugged, using his staff create a snowball and toss it so Wulf can chase it.

Wulf caught the snowball in his mouth and ate it like a dog biscuit. Lea flinched a little when the ghostly wolf creature slunked toward her.

Jack soon took notice of Lea's reaction and smiled a bit. "Oh, come on, Lea. Don't tell me you're afraid of the Ghost Dog,"

"What?! No!" Lea retorted, folding her arms.

"You so are. You've been constantly fainting and panicking since you got here,"

"Hey! If you weren't a spirit and lived a normal life, I'd like to see you try dealing with Ghost Knight Maniacs who kidnap you, lock you up in a torture table, and get tormented with nightmares!" Lea defended, standing up and pointing at him. "Along with a Faceless-Shapeshifting Ghost, a Frost-Yeti Ghost, and a bunch of other creepy stuff!"

Wulf licked Lea's pointing finger.

"EEEEEEEE!" She squealed and jumped into Jack's arms. "HELP! HE JUST TASTED ME!"

Jack couldn't help but laugh and find this all amusing. "You are just too easy, Lea. Wulf is clearly another good ghost friend of Kathy's. He acts more like a playful dog than a ferocious werewolf...Kind of like one of your alien pals that were with you last time. What was he called again?"

"Blitzwolfer," Lea answered. "But he's a Loboan, not covered in black fur, and speaks complete English."

"Still, Wulf doesn't seem dangerous," Jack settled Lea down and gently pushed her towards the wild Ghost Wolf. "You should get to know him better."

Lea gulped, frozen with fear as Wulf towered over her. Wulf hunkered down to sniff Lea carefully. Lea was stiff as a board.

When he memorized her scent, Wulf smiled. "Amiko...friend."

Lea gasped, surprised by the English word. "Friend?"

"Friend!" Wulf gave Lea a friendly lick on the cheek and worked his way to her neck.

"Hehehehehehe! That tickles!" Lea giggled.

"Huh. Well, what do you know? He does speak a little English," Jack replied, a bit surprised and intrigued. "Very cool."

Lea was on her back laughing as Wulf licked her with affection.

"See, Lea? Wulf is harmless as a puppy...as long as no one threatens him, of course." said Lindsey.

"Hahahahahahahahaha! Stahahahahahap!" Lea pleaded.

Jack walked over to Lindsey and Amorpho, whom were interacting with Nightlight. "So, how are you two holding up?"

"Pretty good." said Lindsey, fascinated by Nightlight. "This is amazing! I've never seen a living puppet! Especially one that's not scary!"

"Oh, please." Amorpho sniffed. "What's so special about a puppet?"

"Well, it's not often I see something unusual like this and not ghost related. So, this is a nice change of pace."

"He's Lea's childhood companion since she was a little girl," Jack explained. "Nightlight was created by her grandparents. As for him coming to life, it's pretty much a long story. To shorten it, Lea has this crystal bracelet, along with the same crystal placed inside him, that brings him to life as long as she keeps believing in Guardians, like myself and Kathy."

"Pretty sweet!" said Lindsey.

The doors opened and everyone was happy to see Katherine and Stephen walk out. In Katherine's hands was a book.

"Good news. Stephen and I finished the book together," Katherine replied, giving a half smile.

"Really?! That's our ticket home?!" Lea asked hopefully. Wulf whimpered, getting Lea's attention. "Aw, it's okay, boy." Lea petted the ghost's furry head. "I'm having a great time here!"

"Believe me, I know the feeling," Katherine muttered, looking at the book in tiny sadness.

"Still though, I can't wait to go home!" said Lea, already standing back up. "But I think I'll lay off the ghost stories for a while."

Amorpho scoffed. "Please, what do human writers know about ghosts?"

Jack noticed Katherine wasn't so happy. "What's wrong, Kathy?"

"I'm glad that the lesson is learned and I made amends with Stephen, but...I'm not sure if I want to leave," Katherine said. "Not if it means locking up another Danny Phantom book and placing it in the Forbidden Section for eternity. And I practically made 113 books of them."

"WHAT?!" Everyone shouted.

"Are you kidding me? You made how many stories of this world, and you couldn't even use one of them to get us out of here?!" Lea exclaimed.

"Well, they're all locked up! The books are like small doorways to other dimensions, and vice versa," Katherine defended. "Some are from alternate dimensions that are like a tree with branches, representing time and space branching out other scenarios of the following worlds. Including this one. I locked them all up so no bad ghosts could come into our dimension. Or any villains from our world to get in here...And so I wouldn't be tempted to head back," she guiltily admitted that last part a bit fast.

"Well...maybe not all of them have to be closed." Lindsey said gently.

"Yeah, Kathy. Who says you have to?" Jack remarked. "If you still care about coming back to the Ghost Zone, then you should at least have one book opened and available to return home so none of us would go through a situation like this again,"

Katherine blinked once; a bit amazed by Jack's words of wisdom. "That…is actually a good point. I can't believe the reasonable and responsible Guardian throughout this adventure ended up being you."

"What can I say, Kathy? If you'd listen to me from the beginning, we wouldn't be having this problem," Jack replied proudly, only to smirk on an interesting idea. "Hmmm, I wonder…"

"No, Jack. Don't even think about it," Katherine warned, noticing the mischief in his eyes.

"What?" Jack asked, acting like nothing was going on.

"You want to bring Wulf with us to scare the Easter eggs off Bunny," Kate dryly stated, folding her arms.

"Don't be ridiculous, Kathy. That is not what I was thinking," Jack retorted, only to still smile cunningly. "...I was thinking about bringing Wulf AND Amorpho with us to scare the Easter eggs off Bunny."

"Jackson Overland Frost!" raised the voice of the Guardian of Imagination that made Jack deeply chuckle in amusement. "I should have known this was too good to be true."

"Well, either way, the lad has a point." said Stephen. "So, what do you say, Katherine?"

"...You know what? I think I will," Katherine replied with a smile. "Once we get back home, I'll make sure that the book we both made won't be locked up. It's way too special to be shelved in the Forbidden Section anyway."

"So, is that a yes to bringing Wulf and Amorpho with us?" Jack questioned.

"Jack!" Lea gave the Guardian of Fun a glare at that.

"Well, I for one approve this boy's sense of humor!" said Amorpho.

Lindsey rolled her eyes. "Of course, you do."

"Don't encourage him, Amorpho!" Katherine argued.

Jack laughed in amusement. "At least someone here agrees with my methods and find them fun."

"Infano, mi estas tre bona ĉe ĉasado de kuniklo," Wulf pointed out.

"Awesome! Wulf is in, too!" Jack remarked.

Katherine and Lea just facepalmed on Jack's clueless response.

"Do you even want me to translate that for you?" Katherine asked Lea.

The blonde teen just raised a hand on that. "No. It's fine, Kate. I don't need to understand Esperanto to know what he said to Jack," she deadpanned.

Ghost Writer couldn't help but chuckle at this. "Glad to know that someone is around to keep you entertained at your world as much as us in here. Huh, Katherine?"

"Yeah, I can see that. Guess this is goodbye," Katherine said to Ghost Writer. "...I'll try to come visit here more. Maybe even tell you what's been going on in more detail."

"Looking forward to that. Safe travels,"

And so, the two different writers said their last goodbyes with a loving hug. They knew one thing: Katherine and Ghost Writer will be seeing each other again very soon.

* * *

Somewhere in the dark of night at the Warren, Bunnymund was sleeping soundly. The cool night air felt like a refreshing blanket, as he was curled up in his hammock.

Just then, he heard a strange flashing sound that wasn't far from where he was at. Like someone just teleported.

"What the-?!" Bunny snorted awake and fell out of his hammock.

Soon, Lea-with Nightlight-and Katherine showed up to notice that they were definitely back home.

"Yes! Katherine, it worked! We're back in our home dimension!" Lea cheered in happiness with her fists pumped up in the air.

"Dimension?! What are you lot talking about?!" Bunny blubbered, getting back on his feet. "What the heck is going on around here?! And why does Lea look like a snow princess!?"

Jack, whom showed up beside the girls, just smiled at the Guardian of Hope and raised an eyebrow. "Tell me, Bunny. Do you believe in ghosts?"

"And here we go," Katherine muttered, pinching her nose while lowering her head. "Can't believe you talked me into this."

A dark shadow fell upon Bunny. He turned around and saw a massive wolf creature behind him.

Bunny let out a huge scream and turned to run, only to bump into a man wearing a hat and trench coat and had no face! Just a pair of glasses!

Amorpho laughed as he loomed over the rabbit.

"Crikey! Lea, get out of here! We got intruders invading me home!" Bunny exclaimed, jumping back and grabbing his boomerangs.

Lea put her hands up to calm Bunny down, as well as prevent him from wasting his energy fighting non-corporeal beings. "Relax, Bunny. They're not bad ghosts. They just-WHOOOOA!" She raised her voice when Amorpho grabbed her arms and floated up with the girl.

Nightlight got off before Amorpho grabbed Lea and landed on the soft grass.

"Love to have fun!" Amorpho laughed. He and Lea flew around the Warren as Lea pleaded him to stop.

Feeling hot, smelly breath on his neck, Bunny turned and Wulf's tongue ran up the rabbit's face.

"AAAAHHHHH! GET THIS FEROCIOUS DINGO AWAY FROM EATTING ME!" Bunny hollered, already running on all fours from that beast.

Jack just stayed and laughed at all of this. "Go, Wulf, go! I bet on you!"

Katherine, unlike the Winter Spirit, did not find any of this amusing by placing a hand on her face. "And you wonder why I never wanted to bring any beings from the Ghost Zone here. It's absolute chaos," she groaned, lightly shaking her head.

Jack flew over to Katherine. "Come on, Kathy! Lighten up! These ghosts are livelier than you are!" He took her hands and they glided up in the air.

"Hey! I am so lively, Jack!" Katherine lightly argued.

But Jack wasn't convinced. "Not really. You spend your days cooped up in books and dimensional adventures so much, that you've forgotten how to just let loose and have fun."

"That is not true! I had fun writing a story with Ghost Writer!"

"I rest my case," Jack replied, proving his point.

"Oh, yeah?" Katherine took hold of Jack's arms and swung him into a purple stream of Easter egg coloring. Luckily, she skillfully got out of his hold and landed on her feet to the ground before falling in.

"Now, that's funny!" said Katherine, pointing at Jack.

"I'll say, love!" Bunny laughed, as he and Wulf sat together, after finishing their chase minutes ago.

Lea and Amorpho laughed, as they hovered in the sky.

Jack slowly got up from the purple water, only to look like a colorful mess all over! He was full of different bright Easter colors from his hair, clothes, skin, even his tongue.

"Really wish my mouth wasn't opened when taking a dive," Jack deadpanned, after spitting some remaining liquid in his mouth.

"Who's the unlively one now?" Katherine remarked, laughing at Jack's appearance before making a run for it.

Deep down, Katherine was gratefully about Jack's concern of her safety throughout this whole adventure that made him tag along. Not to mention the fact that he nearly tried bringing Ghost Writer to her. And, despite his usual childish antics, he was being the sensible one when Kate wasn't. Perhaps the Winter Spirit had his own secret feelings for her, as well. Or maybe he's slowy learning about this kind of emotion. Only time would tell.

As Jack began chasing Katherine around the Warren, the Ghost Writer, who was watching everything from afar, smiled as he put the finishing touches on his novel.

"The End," The Ghost Writer aka Stephen was happy to hear from his old Storytelling Friend and that she will be seeing him again more often. He closed a dark black, green, and gray book that was titled _'Ghost Stories'_, cowritten by M.G. Joyce and himself.

Just then, Ghost Writer felt a tiny tug on his coat to notice it was Nightlight. Grinning, Ghost Writer gave him a lift and placed the little guy on a nearby tree branch.

"Glad to know everything worked out," Ghost Writer said to the Wooden Toy, whom nodded his head in agreement.

Nightlight then noticed something else was on the Ghost Writer's mind, as if something was troubling him.

Once seeing Nightlight raise an eyebrow, Stephen knew what the silent toy was thinking. "There's still so many gaps that don't make any sense. And I can't help but think this was all meant for her. After all, I had nothing to do with any of this."

That made Nightlight's eyes grew wide in realization. For what Stephen said was true. The Phantom Author had no clue of the Guardian of Imagination's arrival in the Ghost Zone, nor had anything to do with trapping her and her friends in this dimension.

Which leaves only one question: If Ghost Writer wasn't the one responsible for Katherine and her friends getting stuck in the Ghost Zone, then who was?

* * *

Back in the Ghost Zone, an interesting specter was looking upon the vastness of the supernatural dimension. He appeared to be a violet-cloaked ghost with a pale blue face and a scar across his left eye. A clock-like mechanism was embedded in his chest. He also carried a time staff. What also made him intriguing was that his ghost body was constantly switching between a child form to an adult form to an old form, which was due to his time-base nature.

This ghost was none other than Clockwork, the Ghost Master of Time.

"I see you've finally returned," Clockwork said, as he turned around to see the Fright Knight.

"So, was it really necessary to kidnap that spineless human just so the Ghost Writer can be reunited with some friend of his?" asked the Fright Knight.

"Yes, and it also answered your question about Lindsey, as well."

The knight was silent.

"She rejected all that power and believed that the Ghost Zone doesn't need to be ruled." Clockwork smiled. "She passed the test with flying colors."

"I suppose," Fright Knight nearly scoffed while folding his arms. "I still don't understand why you wanted that Guardian Maiden in going through any of this."

"I have my reasons, Fright Knight," Clockwork assured, already checking on one of his time portal screens to look at something. "And, if all goes well, Katherine will be ready to face the threat that remains set in stone for her."

He glanced at the screen that barely showed small glimpses of the Guardian of Imagination's fate. With one of them that revealed Kate screaming in pain with something sharp piercing right through her. Only Clockwork knew who will be responsible with this upcoming battle. And he alone only knew how that fight will go.

* * *

**_Redbat132: And so, this story ends like any good haunting mystery: a classic twist! Rest assured, there will be more Danny Phantom RotG crossovers in the future. ;)_**

_**Also, to answer VinnieStokerLover's comment, yes, something will eventually happen to Katherine. However, it's not right now at the moment. The time will come soon. For now, it would seem that Katherine has a lot of catching up to do with Ghost Writer aka Stephen.**_

_**Another thing I forgot to mention, is that I kind of made up an actual name for Ghost Writer. 'Stephen' was just a small reference of his physical appearance from famous horror author, Stephen King. He is a poet much like famous 18th century writer Edgar Allan Poe, who specialized in dark poems and short stories. I was even gonna call his human/author disguised name Stephen Edgar or Stephen Writer. Like how I thought of Katherine's author name M.G. Joyce.**_

_**Anyway, hope you all enjoyed this story.**_


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